1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electronic card game devices and methods that incorporate progressive jackpot operations controlled by a central server computer.
2. Description of the Background Art
Electronic card game devices exist in many forms and are known to those skilled in the art. For example, eTables are multiplayer electronic gaming machines that enable one or more players to play a card game. An example is a multiplayer electronic table game that in operation utilizes a common display for view of all game activity and is marketed under the brand name TABLEMAX. This product and features thereof are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,688,174, 6,921,337, 7,201,661 and 7,575,512, as well as US Published Patent Application 20090253480, each of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference and each includes the inventor of the claimed subject invention as the sole or a joint inventor. These patents and application disclose various features of multiplayer card gaming devices including touch screen panels at player stations and server based gaming aspects, for example.
Another form of electronic table card game is disclosed in US Published Patent Application 20110177854, which is also incorporated herein by reference and is to the inventor of the subject invention. This application describes an electronic table device product marketed under the brand name BARMAX in which a system of multiple bar top gaming terminal devices and a common display are employed to facilitate the play of multiplayer electronic table card games using the common display to display game play and the outcome of the multiplayer games. Each of the bar top terminal devices can either be used as a standalone single player gaming terminal or as a player station in the multiplayer game. In addition, the terminals can be configured to play single player and multiple player games simultaneously.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,474,649, which names the same inventor of the subject invention as a joint inventor, is also incorporated by reference herein. This patent discloses a modified version of the play for utilization with card games in which unique symbols which are different from the standard markings on the otherwise conventional playing cards are provided on a select number of the playing cards. The unique symbols may be associated to a player by providing a respective unique symbol at each player station of a card game table, and each player being assigned a player station. Each player optionally places a bet upon a chance that predetermined event will occur. Cards are dealt to the players and to a dealer according to a set of rules. If a predetermined event occurs wherein one or more of the player's cards and the dealer's cards having a playing card with a unique symbol corresponding with the player's associated unique symbol, that player is paid a return amount.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,980,933, which is also incorporated by reference herein and names the same inventor as that of the subject invention, discloses methods of electronic card game play involving certain progressive gaming functionality which is incorporated into a commercial progressive system brand named MAXLINK. More particularly, the '933 patent discloses methods of electronic card game play wherein during play of a first card game, an outcome of a second game of chance is displayed as an attribute of an electronic card used in play of the first card game. Examples include generation of one or more game outcomes of an independent game of chance, such as a dice game, a lottery, or another card game, and assignment of a graphical depiction of the second game outcome on one or more of the cards played in the first card game.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,861,041 and 5,087,405 (both to Jones et al.) disclose methods and apparatus for progressive jackpot gaming, respectively. The former patent discloses that a player may make an additional wager at the beginning of a hand, the outcome of the additional wager being determined by of a predetermined arrangement of cards in the player's hand.
One known form of progressive jackpot gaming employs what is referred to as a wide area progressive system (WAN) in which a plurality of electronic gaming machines each share in the progressive contribution to and potential award payout from a common jackpot. A specific form of WAN known as a central determination wide area progressive system (CDWAP) employs a central server computer in operative communication with one or more gaming devices to conduct a progressive jackpot. These are progressive systems employed with slot machines, such as MEGABUCKS from IGT, wherein the determination of the wide area jackpot award is performed by a calculation upon the central server computer connected to one or more slot machines. Typically, a single controller in the central server computer awards the jackpot and communicates this information to a client slot machine in operative communication with the central server computer for display to the player upon a selected device.
In one illustrative example, each client gaming device enables play of a game with a progressive feature. The central server computer maintains a progressive jackpot amount. Before the commencement of play upon said client gaming devices, each device communicates with the central server computer and submits a request to determine if the next play of the device is a progressive jackpot winner. If the request response is negative, the client gaming device conducts the next play of the device and does not award said progressive jackpot feature. Alternatively, if the request response is positive, the client device will award the progressive jackpot amount upon the next play of the device.
Numerous variations of slot machine CDWAPs exist. Client devices that gather multiple progressive outcome decisions per communication with a CDWAP and then queue them for future iterations of play into the future are known. Also, in the case of internet based games, conducting a function call to a CDWAP and responding accordingly thereafter to said response before each play of a game is common.
In the use of the aforementioned MEGABUCKS brand slot machines marketed by IGT, players play slot machines and have a chance to win a large progressive jackpot. Typically the jackpot starts at $10,000,000 and winners are paid with annuities. These jackpots attract players and the payment of the jackpot amount in the form of an annuity is a profitable activity for IGT.
In addition to CDWAPs, many known gaming devices operate with the client devices determining if a player wins a progressive jackpot award. Often in single location casinos, local lower value progressive amounts are aggregated and awarded by banks of gaming machines. A common example would be ten or twenty video poker devices, such as those marketed by IGT under the brand name BONUS POKER, that accumulate progressive values and award a smaller jackpot to the first player to obtain a predetermined hand such as a Royal Flush. In this embodiment each of the client devices can generate and award the progressive value that is shared amongst the devices.
Although these configurations are quite popular, typically they are offered with lower value progressives. A number of reasons exist for this including the criteria upon which card games can possibly award a jackpot value and also the architecture that relies upon many individual video poker devices calculating and awarding the progressive jackpot independently. Machine malfunctions are known and are a material consideration in operation of wide area systems. Thus, the more devices that are relied upon to calculate and award a progressive jackpot, the more likely it is that a malfunction will occur during game play that could interfere with each payer's satisfaction in playing the game.
Live table systems utilize a similar technology whereby a common computer or server will simply accumulate a progressive jackpot amount and this said server is in operative communication with one or more client live tables typically with electronic displays. When a live dealer deals a certain predetermined hand to a player, the progressive jackpot is awarded to said player. These systems are common in live card games wherein a dealer will deal and verify a jackpot award to a player.
Although slot machine CDWAPs are well known and quite a mature technology, a fundamental problem exists in the gaming industry in regards to operating electronic card games in a WAP mode of operation offering large wide area progressive jackpots. Currently, eTables such as TABLEMAX operate progressive card games utilizing the aforementioned system of progressive operation wherein a WAP server computer accumulates a jackpot amount. However, the individual gaming application upon each eTable performs the determination and awarding step of the jackpot award amount. This configuration is similar to the IGT Bonus Poker configurations detailed above and inherently has the same stated limitations.